You've Been Talking In Your Sleep
by xoxoAmberBabyGirlxoxo
Summary: Brock and Reba Hart's twenty year marriage is hanging on only by a thread; however Reba receives hope from the most unexpected way. Will their marriage survive when all they do when they are together is argue?


Reba Hart sat on her couch and ran her hands through her short red hair. It had been a long day; hell it had been a long week, even a long month. For the past month Reba and her husband Brock had been having arguments left and right. He had been spending more time at his dental office, and that was driving Reba crazy. Reba understood that he had work, and sometimes he had to stay after because he had so much work, but she was not okay with him leaving for work early in the morning before the kids got up and getting home after Reba had put the kids to sleep. Brock was only seeing the kids on the weekends, and that bothered Reba to no end. Not to mention that Reba mainly only got to see him on weekends as well. That's how it had been for the last month in the Hart household and it was driving Reba mad.

That was the exact same way that today had went, and since it was Friday the rest of the weekend wasn't going to be great either. With a sigh the red head picked up the damp wash cloth that was on the coffee table and placed it on her forehead. There was a part of her that was thinking their marriage was over. It felt as if they didn't even have a marriage anymore. Marriage is not getting into a fight every time you talk to your spouse, and that's what happened between them. _I love this man more than anything, but has those wildfires burned out_ , Reba asked herself as she closed her eyes and prayed to go to a happier place in her thoughts.

Within two minutes of Reba placing the wash cloth on her forehead and closing her eyes, Brock walked through the front door as he placed his briefcase next to the stairs. He then closed the door and turned around to see his wife laying down. "What's wrong with you? You feel okay?" Brock asked softly, but there was a part of Reba that felt as if his attention was somewhere else, and all she could do was pray that it wasn't someone else who had his attention.

Reba sighed and looked at Brock once she opened her eyes. "I'm just tired and have a headache, okay." Reba said softly and she tried to not say it with her famous sass, but she couldn't help it. She hated the way their relationship was going, and she knew that the reason she was so stressed was because of what was happening. There was no doubt in her mind that it was the reason she had been getting so many headaches lately.

Brock looked at her and rolled his eyes. He honestly didn't care if she saw him and got mad. "Reba you didn't have to answer that with sass. I was asking a simple question because you obviously don't feel good. You're my wife and I care about you so I was just asking a question, but seeing how I get nothing but attitude from you no matter what I do I guess I just won't say anything next time." Brock said as he started to walk towards the kitchen.

Reba stood up and turned around so she could face Brock. "Oh really Brock. If you care so much about me then why are you leaving for work before I wake up and returning so late? Why do you always fight with me no matter what I say? Huh? Can you answer me that?!" Reba said as she looked at Brock and knew that they were about to have another fight. At this point she didn't even care. She was so tired of feeling like she wasn't enough for him anymore that she couldn't hold in her questions any longer.

Brock turned around and looked at Reba. He couldn't believe that she was accusing him of not caring about her. They had been married for the last twenty years and had three absolutely beautiful children together, so of course he cared for her. "Is that really what you think Reba? That I don't care for you? If I didn't care for you then I wouldn't be in this marriage! If I didn't care for you then I would have left a long time ago!" Brock said as he wasn't sure what he was feeling at the moment. It wasn't complete anger, but it wasn't complete sadness either. It was a mixture of anger, sadness, and shock. Shock that their marriage had gotten to this, and shock of what she had just accused him of.

Reba looked at Brock but she didn't move any closer to him. What was this feeling that she was feeling inside? It didn't feel like hope, even though Brock was saying that he cared for her. Was it sadness that they were fighting again? Maybe it was curiosity if he was ready to give up on their marriage. After all, they hadn't been like they used to be in so long that maybe there was a part of both of them that dreaded being together. That's not how a marriage was supposed to be, and Reba had a feeling that they both realized and knew that. "Brock I only see you on weekends, and we fight constantly when we're together!"

Brock sighed and threw his head back. He felt as if they had this fight before but here they were having it again. "Reba I told you I have been backed up on work and I have been trying to get caught up! You nagging at me and making me feel like a horrible husband and father is not helping either! Hell, if anything it just makes me want to stay at the office longer." Brock said and once he realized what he had said he was shocked, but he knew that it was true. The last thing that he wanted to deal with was a nagging wife that made him feel like he was horrible to her and their kids.

Reba's mouth dropped some when he spoke the last part. He just admitted that he would rather be at the office than with her and their children. The thoughts of Brock having a mistress went through her head again. "You know what Brock, if you want to be at your office so much then why don't you just stay there! You're barely home anyways so you might as well live in the office!" Reba said as she turned around and ran upstairs trying to hide her face so Brock couldn't see how upset she was.

When she reached their bedroom she quickly changed into her blue pajamas and climbed into her side of their king sized bed. She wasn't sure what to think or do anything. _He's for sure done with our marriage_ , Reba thought to herself as she felt a tear slowly make its way down her cheek. _If he would rather be at the office with whoever, than be here with his family this marriage is probably hanging on by a thread in his eyes_. Reba didn't want to lose her husband. Yes, they had their problems and they fought constantly, but she still loved him and she would love to find a way to fix their marriage, if that was even possible.

Roughly thirty minutes after Reba climbed into bed she felt the other side of the bed move. _I surely thought he would've slept on the couch_ , Reba thought to herself. She was debating rather she should stay quiet and pretend to be asleep, or if she should say something just so he knows she's not asleep.

Right when Reba was going to say good night to her husband, she heard him softly snoring. How could such an annoying sound as snoring be so comforting to her? Was it because that sound reassured her that at the end of the day he came home to her and was sleeping next to her? Even if he had a mistress, he still came home to her. He was never away for a whole night, and even when they had horrible fights he always seemed to find his way back to their bed. With a soft sigh Reba continued to stare at the wall that she was facing as tears continued to drip from her eyes and onto her pillow.

It seemed like eternity had passed and Reba was nowhere even relatively close to getting sleep. All she could think about was what they were going through. What happened if they decided to get in a divorce? There was more than just the two of them they needed to think about. They had three kids that either decision would greatly effect. If they decided to work on their marriage, the fighting had to stop. It was killing Reba knowing that their kids were witnessing them argue, because that's all they did. Reba tried to not argue with Brock in front of the kids, but she knew that if they didn't see them arguing they could still hear them, and that was something she knew had to change. If they decided to get in a divorce they needed to have a civil divorce and they needed to have agreement on everything that way it was as easy as a divorce possibly could be for their children.

When she heard her husband softly say something she looked over at the clock. _Why in the universe is he up at two thirty in the morning_ , Reba asked herself while she still remained relatively still. Then all of a sudden she heard him start to snore again. He hadn't gotten out of bed. In fact, he hadn't moved at all. He was talking in his sleep, something Reba hadn't heard him do for years. The only thing was that Reba couldn't make out what Brock was saying. _What if he's saying the name of some woman that he knows from the office_ , Reba asked herself as her heart sank. She wasn't going to pretend that it wasn't an option, but when she heard her husband speak again her mind was changed.

Brock, still asleep and in the exact same place he had been the whole night, was not talking about another woman. He was talking about his wife, the woman that was laying right next to him in their bed. "Reba…." He said softly as Reba carefully turned to face him instead of the wall so she wouldn't wake him but could hear him better. "Please…. Reba…" Brock said softly as Reba could only wonder why Brock was saying her name. What was happening in his dream between the two of them? Was she about to leave him? Was he begging her to stay, which was something she never thought he would do. "Because I love you Reba…"

That's when a small smile appeared on Reba's face. Granted he was asleep and she didn't know what was going on in his dream, but she hadn't heard him say that he loved her in so long and she longed to hear those words. Reba laid her head on the pillow and watched Brock sleep as she listened to him snore and softly talk until she fell asleep.

The following morning when Reba woke up she was shocked to see that Brock was still asleep, but she then remembered that it was Saturday morning and she was no longer shocked. Reba carefully got out of bed because the last thing she wanted to do was wake up Brock and he be in a bad mood. She then walked to their master suite bathroom and slipped on a robe over her pajamas as she brushed her teeth and hair. She then quietly headed downstairs to make the kids their breakfast because she knew they would be getting up at any moment considering it was almost nine now.

When she walked in the kitchen she felt relieved, and it was because of something that other people wouldn't even care about. She was relieved because there was nothing on the counter that wasn't supposed to be there. The toaster was not where Brock usually left it, and this shocked Reba because for the past month they had argued over the fact that Reba wanted it in the cabinet. _What the hell is going on here_ , Reba asked herself as she tried to not get her hopes up that everything was going to start going uphill. After all, she didn't know why things would change after the argument that they had last night. They've had worse arguments before and things had never changed, so as much as she wanted to Reba didn't really have too much hope in things getting better yet.

She walked over to the stove and started making pancakes as she heard three pairs of feet traveling down the stairs and into the kitchen. "Hey mom, what's for breakfast?" Reba heard her seven year old son Jake ask her as he then walked over to the table that they had in the kitchen. Before Reba could answer his question Jake had asked if he could go in the living room and watch some cartoons before they ate breakfast. Reba giggled at the fact that he had such a short attention span.

Their middle daughter who had just celebrated her twelfth birthday not too long ago rolled her eyes when her younger brother left the kitchen to watch cartoons. "Mom, his brain is going to rot from all the cartoons that he watches. He's going to start chasing me with a frying pan or something. I'm just saying if I wake up and have a black eye I'm blaming you." Kyra said as she then turned around, her long red hair flipping to her back, as she walked out of the kitchen and into the living room with Jake. That child had so much sass and Reba had no doubt that it came from her. Kyra had red hair like her mother, and blue eyes like both of her parents. She was definitely the sassiest of the three kids, but she didn't mind that one bit.

Reba couldn't help but giggle and roll her eyes. There was never a dull moment when she was with her children. Each of them were different in their own ways and she enjoyed watching them grow up and express their different personalities. Cheyanne, the oldest of the three children and the only child with blonde hair because Jake had black, was the only person in the kitchen with her mother now. "Mom, are you and dad okay? I heard the two of you arguing last night when I got up to go to the bathroom." Cheyanne said as she sat on one of the stools that were at the island.

Hearing those words come from her eldest daughter's mouth made Reba realize that even when she thought the kids couldn't hear them they really could. "Honey, you know your father and I are having problems. I'm sorry that you heard us fighting." Reba said softly as she didn't look at Cheyanne. She felt awful for what she was exposing their kids too. Cheyanne sat on the island stool and watched her mom cook for a few minutes until Brock walked in.

Cheyanne stood up and looked at her mom. "I'm going to go watch cartoons with the other two." Cheyanne said as she knew she wasn't going to really watch cartoons but she wanted to give some time to her parents. She knew her parents were having problems and that they didn't have a perfect marriage, but she also knew that they didn't want to talk about their problems in front of any of their kids.

After Cheyanne left the room and it was just the two of them Brock looked over at Reba. "What was that about?" Brock asked as he took a seat where Cheyanne had been sitting not too long before. Looking at his wife he could tell that things were on her mind, and he knew that it was probably the fact that they had a fight last night. He was tired of fighting with her but he didn't want to end their marriage. He wanted to go back to the way that it was the previous year before they started having serious problems.

Reba was watching the pancakes to make sure that they turned a golden brown and didn't burn. "She heard us fighting Brock." Reba said as she then looked up at him. "Last night when you came home and we had that fight, Cheyanne had gotten up to go to the bathroom and heard us." Reba said softly. Brock could see that Reba was bothered by this, and Brock was too. He knew that it wasn't healthy for children to see their parents argue, especially with how much he and Reba argue. Brock witnessed his parents arguing quite a bit and that was the last thing he wanted for their children. Brock was taken out of his thoughts when Reba started talking again. "She asked me if we were okay."

Brock looked up at Reba when she said the last part as he had different scenarios of what Reba could have said to their daughter. Was she wanting to fix things, was she wanting to get in a divorce? Reba wasn't saying anything afterwards and the suspense of not knowing what she told their daughter was driving him crazy. "Oh… What did you say?" Brock asked softly after about a minute of silence.

Reba turned off the stove and started putting food on everybody's plates. "I told her that we have our problems and then I apologized that she heard us fighting." Reba said softly. "I wasn't sure what else to tell her. I mean when we don't even know where we stand it's kind of hard to tell someone else." Reba said as she then yelled for the kids to come eat their breakfast.

Brock didn't say anything to Reba about what she had said. He knew that they had problems and neither one of them ever discussed rather they were wanting a divorce or not. Brock knew he didn't, and Reba knew she didn't, but they didn't know about each other. How were they supposed to know since they never talked about it? All the kids came into the kitchen where they all had breakfast. Brock and Reba didn't say much to each other, but it seemed like the first time they were in the same room and weren't fighting. They were actually enjoying a nice family breakfast with their kids.

When they were done eating breakfast the kids all went up to their rooms to get ready for the day. Brock was already in the clothes that he was going to wear for the day. He looked at Reba and then stood up from the table. "Well, I'm going to go to the golf course." Brock said softly as he walked towards the kitchen door after grabbing the keys to his Lexus off of the key rack that they had next to the kitchen door.

Reba looked at Brock and she couldn't believe that he was going to play golf again instead of being here with his family. "Really Brock? You've gone to the course the past five Saturdays. Can you spend one Saturday with your family?" Reba said as she got up and picked up the dishes to put them in the sink.

Brock sighed and looked over at Reba. "I enjoy going to the golf course. Golfing is a hobby of mine and I never get time to do it during the week because of work and home, so I would appreciate it if you would let me go one day every week." Brock said as he held the keys in his hands. He knew that he was going to go no matter what Reba said, and she knew that too.

Reba slammed her hands on the counter. "Between work and home?! You're never home! You're only home for sleep! You know what Brock, go. I don't care." Reba said as she could feel herself shaking. The fact that Brock wanted to go to the golf course made her mad, but when he tried to use being at home as an excuse it made her furious. She could feel the heat on her cheeks that were now almost the color of her hair.

Brock turned around without saying a word to his wife. There was no way that this was making their marriage improve, but Brock didn't care at the moment. He worked hard every day of the week, and argued with his wife every night of the week. All he was asking for was one day where he could go to the golf course and do something for himself, and he was going to. Brock opened the door and walked out of it, slamming it behind him.

Slamming her hands against the counter again Reba couldn't believe that he had just left to go play golf. If he didn't have a mistress that was a person, then golf was his green mistress. Reba wasn't even sure where she fit into his life anymore. Go to work early, come home late, argue and then go to bed, play golf on Saturday; that was the way their days worked and Reba felt like she no longer belonged. Besides, if she wasn't there nagging him and anything else he said she did it would make life a whole lot easier for him.

 _Of course he leaves. Why wouldn't he? Why would I even think that there would be a day where he stays with us the whole day?_ Reba thought to herself as she then rolled her eyes. The more she thought about their situation the angrier she got. She didn't understand why Brock didn't want to spend time with their family. Why did he have to go and do whatever the hell he wanted instead of seeing the people that he claimed to love the most, when he hasn't been seeing them much in the first place?

The rest of the day Reba spent pretending that there was nothing wrong that way her kids would think that everything was okay. Cheyanne knew that something was going on, but if her mother wanted to keep it between her and Brock then she understood that. It was their privacy as a married couple, and beside children should never get involved with their parents issues. Reba hated that Cheyanne knew as much as she did, and she was going to do her best to keep as much away from her as possible.

Brock walked through the kitchen door about an hour after they had dinner, and the first thing he saw was Reba sitting at the kitchen table reading a book. He knew that she was waiting for him, and he knew that she would be before he even left. "Where are the kids?" Brock asked he hung his keys on the key rack and then looked at Reba.

Reba sat her book down on the kitchen table and looked up at Brock. "They all went over to their friend's house so we can talk." Reba said as she didn't get up off of the chair. "You would have known this if you would've made it home for dinner, but just like during the week you are always home late." Reba said as she rolled her eyes and picked her book up to start reading it again, that is until Brock started talking.

Brock looked at Reba and he couldn't believe that he just walked through the door and they were arguing again. "Why don't you understand that I want one day where I can go do what I want? One day that I can escape from the devastating way that things are going around here!" Brock said in a stern voice as he was getting annoyed again. He was beginning to wonder if Reba would ever understand what he was talking about.

Reba slammed her book on the table and stood up. "Why don't you understand that your family misses you?! I'm tired of saying good night to the kids by myself! I'm tired of having the kids eat dinner with one parent! I feel like I'm a single parent!" Reba said as her hand motions were going wild. Reba talked with her hands sometimes, just like everything did, and when she got angry she seemed to talk with hand motions a lot more.

Hearing Reba talk about how she felt like a single parent made Brock want to state the fact that he was the one that brought home the income, but he knew better than to say something like that. "Reba I'm tired of having to work late, I'm tired of coming home to you nagging at me about how I'm never home. I'm tired of us fighting constantly and if this is what our marriage is going to be like then maybe we need to take a break!" Brock said as he instantly regretted that. He didn't want to take a break. He loved Reba with all of his heart and soul despite how much they argued.

The way Reba spoke quickly changed. She looked at Brock, this time with sadness in her eyes, and softly said, "If that's what you want." She then turned around before he could say something else and she quickly walked out of the kitchen and upstairs to their bedroom. That seemed like the place where she felt safe the most even though it was just as much his as it was hers.

About an hour had past and Reba was still laying in their bed the exact same way she did the previous night. Tears were starting to drench her check and she was questioning everything that she possibly could. There was a part of her that wanted this to be a dream. She wanted to wake up and everything be like they used to be. Just like the previous night she felt the other side of the bed slowly sink as someone now occupied the emptiness that the side had just a minute ago. There was a sense of relief that Reba had because once again Brock was in their bed after they had a fight. Reba knew he could leave and find somewhere else to sleep for the night, or hell he could even find a new place to say, but the fact that he hadn't made Reba feel as if they did have a chance.

Just like the previous night Brock started snoring almost instantly after his head hit his pillow, and just like what had happened the night before Brock quietly started talking in his sleep. Reba slowly and carefully turned to face Brock and listened to what he was saying. "I'm sorry.. I love you.." Brock said softly as he continued to sleep. Reba laid her head on her pillow and waited for Brock to say something else. Reba couldn't help that maybe Brock talking in his sleep was how he said the things that he really wanted to say. Reba started to drift off to sleep until she heard Brock starting to talk again. "I don't…. want a divorce Reba… I love you." Hearing that had reassured Reba that they still had a chance but they couldn't just keep pushing it off. They needed to take the chance and work on their marriage before there was no longer one. Reba closed her eyes and slowly let sleep consume her.

When Reba woke up the next morning her heart immediately sunk when she noticed that Brock's side of the bed was empty. She then looked at the clock and when she read that it was eight thirty she sighed. He must have went to the golf course. That golf course was going to be the end of their marriage if he continued to go there and neglect his family. Reba groaned as she slowly got out of their bed and got a robe on. She then brushed her teeth but she didn't care about brushing her hair. Hell, she was probably alone in the house anyways so no one was going to see.

Walking into the kitchen she was shocked to see that her husband hadn't left to go to the golf course after all. "What are you doing? I thought for sure that you would be gone." Reba said softly not knowing rather or not she should mention what happened last night after he had went to sleep. There was no way he knew that he was talking in his sleep and Reba wasn't sure what he would say when she revealed it.

Brock, who was sitting at the kitchen table reading the paper, looked up at Reba. "I woke up and didn't want to wake you, so I went and got the paper. I did make you some breakfast. It's nothing special just eggs and toast. I kept the eggs on the burner on low so they wouldn't go cold." Brock said as he then shifted his attention back to the paper. Reba was shocked and impressed that Brock had made her breakfast. That was a small gesture that Reba never really expected from Brock.

Reba smiled softly as she walked over and got the food that Brock had cooked. She then went over and got a cup of coffee as she sat at the island. "Thank you." Reba said hoping that Brock would realize that she appreciated what he had done. She then looked over at Brock. "Can we please talk without yelling at each other and one of us leaving?" Reba asked once she finished eating her breakfast.

Placing the paper on the kitchen table Brock looked over at Reba. His heart started raising as his thoughts were going through all the possibilities of what Reba was going to say. Did she want a divorce, or did she want to work this out? "I think that's fair." Brock said softly as he didn't get up from the chair. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do now anyways. If Reba had her mind made up that she wanted a divorce there was going to be no trying to sweet talk her out of it. His puppy dog eyes had stopped working for her, and Brock couldn't blame her because of everything that he had put her through recently.

Reba looked at Brock but she didn't move. She wanted to talk to him about what was going on but she couldn't find the words anymore. It seemed like she could always say what she wanted to him when she was mad because it would just come out, but now that she was calm she didn't know how or what to say. Did she love him? Of course. Did she want to get in a divorce? Never. Was she unsure of where they stood in their marriage? Definitely. Reba looked at Brock and sighed softly as she then started to talk. "Where do we stand Brock? You're never home and the little time that you are home we act like we can't stand each other." Reba wanted to have a talk that would be beneficial to their relationship.

Brock wanted to sigh but he watched his attitude because he knew that if he acted the wrong way they were going to start fighting again. "Reba, I've told you that I never get time to go golfing anymore so I want to do that on weekends." Brock said as he looked at her and could tell that something was on Reba's mind.

Reba looked at Brock and tried to find the words that she wanted to say. "Brock, do you want to work on our marriage? When you're awake I have doubts that our marriage is going to be okay, but for the past two nights when you fall asleep and I lay in our bed you've talked in your sleep." Reba said as she could see the shock in Brock's face that he was talking in his sleep. Of course he was curious to what he was saying in his sleep.

Brock looked at Reba. "Of course I want our marriage to work Reba. No one goes into a marriage hoping that it ends in divorce." He said as he tried to think of a decent way to ask what he was saying in his sleep. "Did I say something while sleeping that made you think otherwise?" Brock asked as he finally got up out of his chair and stood next to it.

Reba stayed sitting on her chair as she looked at Brock, who was now almost eye level with her. "Well, actually when you sleep you say that you love me and you don't want a divorce. Believe it or not even though I went and laid down crying both nights, I ended up falling asleep with a smile on my face. Even though it was a little smile it was still a smile. Hearing you say things like that, even when you're sleeping, has given me hope that whatever we are going through we can get through it. For that to happen I have to know where we stand, and if we decide that we are going to work on our marriage things are going to have to change."

Brock looked over at his wife and slowly walked over to her before he put his hands on her cheeks and pressed his lips to her forehead. That was the closest the two of them have gotten without fighting for over a month. However, Reba could only wonder if this just meant that he had made his choice and he didn't want to work things out. "Reba, you're my wife and I love you more than anything. I guess I haven't really been acting like the type of husband I should be." Brock said as he looked into Reba's eyes. "If you are going to give us a chance, to give me a chance to prove to you that I can be a better husband and family man then there's no way that I would ever pass that up."

Reba looked at her husband and she wasn't sure what to say. "You do realize that to make this work there has to be no more coming home late, and spending more time with us on weekends. I mean if you want to go play golf on a Saturday then that's fine, but don't stay gone the whole day. Before we make a decision I have to ask a question that has honestly been killing me to think about. Are you having an affair?" Reba asked bluntly as Brock was shocked that she had asked that.

Brock looked at Reba but once he considered the reasons that she was asking that question he knew that it made sense. "Reba I may not be the best husband to you or father to our kids, but I would never cheat on you. No matter what life has thrown at the two of us I have always remained faithful to you and will always remain faithful to you. I wish I would've opened my eyes and realized that I was making you think I had a mistress that way I could've made sure that you knew right away that it would never happen." Brock said as he looked in Reba's beautiful eyes. They both noticed the peace that they hadn't had together in what seemed like a lifetime. "Reba Nell Hart I love you and I will spend my whole life to prove that to you."

Reba smiled at Brock softly and looked into his blue eyes. "You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear you say that." Reba said with the biggest smile. She had barely smiled in the last month, but she felt like that was all she could do now. "I love you Brock Enroll Hart, now can we please get back to the way that we were?"

With a soft nod of his head to answer Reba's question he then softly pressed his lips to hers, and in a way this was something that took her by surprise. Despite taking her by surprise, feeling Brock's soft kiss on her lips was exactly what she wanted and needed. She knew now that they did have a chance, and all of her worries started slowly slipping away knowing that they were going to work on their marriage. Finally there was peace and love between the two of them, and Reba couldn't help but to think that it never would've happened if Brock hadn't been talking in his sleep.


End file.
